Constraints on the SCEC 3D Velocity Model: 2D Gravity Modeling of the Transverse Ranges

Nancy Natek
Univ. of New Mexico
natek@unm.edu

Mentor: Mousomi Roy

Gravity can be a useful tool in constraining seismic tomography. In this project we develop a 2D gravity model based on version 2 of the Southern California Earthquake Center (SCEC) 3D velocity model to constrain the tomographic model. The 3D seismic velocity model for Southern California in the Los Angeles region is a crustal tomographic model of P-wave and S-wave velocities reflecting density structures. This study is based on previous work by Roy and Clayton for version 1 of the SCEC 3D velocity model which showed that the seismic tomography was in general consistent with gravity but with some discrepancies in the LA Basin and Transverse Ranges. In the preliminary part of our study shown in the slides below, we compare four 2D topographic profiles across the central and eastern Transverse Ranges to Airy Compensation models and observed gravity. In our current research we are using scaling relations of Vp and density to calculate the crustal density variations from the SCEC 3D velocity model and comparing the observed gravity to the predicted gravity.

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Table of Contents

Constraints on the SCEC 3D Velocity Model: 2D Gravity Modeling of the Transverse Ranges

Project Description

Methodology

SCEC 3D Velocity Model

Airy Compensation Model

Gravity Modeling

Bouguer Gravity Anomalies

Gravity Data Profiles

Observed Gravity

Profile 1 (delrho=500, crust=2800, mantle=3300)

Profile 2 (delrho=500, crust=2800, mantle=3300)

Profile 3 (delrho=500, crust=2800, mantle=3300)

Profile 4 (delrho=500, crust=2800, mantle=3300)

Profile 4 (delrho=1100, crust=2200, mantle=3300)

Continuing Research

Acknowledgements